sandwitches Mrs. Jones' Cookies (CD, £5.50)

label: Empty Cellar

San Francisco's Sandwitches have been plugging away at their craft for a couple of magical years now, sprinkling their barbed, alluring electric folk briars across unsuspecting gardens in the Bay Area and beyond. Previous releases, such as the swampy ecstasy of How To Make Ambient Sadcake and 2010's oceanic ouija board of an EP, Duck Duck Goose!, captured distinct sides of the trio. Mrs. Jones' Cookies unifies their uniquely whimsical and creepy vision. It pours Sadcake's plaintive bounce into Duck Duck's celestial, mysterious drift, spiking the mix with a side they've previously only hinted at: a playfulness, a comfort. It's the sound of a band at ease with unease. Even when they're plumbing the most desperate depths, there's an unforced confidence in the lonely plucking of guitarists HEIDI ALEXANDER and GRACE COOPER. The shared vocal duties are where these ladies truly and finally let loose. On 'Lightfoot' and single 'Summer Of Love' drummer ROXY BRODEUR punches out lively, soul-flecked trots, as Grace and Heidi tickle the end of their high and low ranges, returning later to those highs and lows with extra force and bluster, shooting out the lights with aplomb. Features guest appearances from JAMES FINCH JR., SHAYDE SARTIN and DIC STUSSO.